An ethics/legal/neighbor question

[Slamfire]

I'm aware stumpy, I voted for him 4 times. :redface:

 

[CrackStock]

DC,

You do not mention where you live, so it is hard to answer your question. As you can see from the answers, attitudes are varied between the different states.

You must consider laws, customs and friendships before deciding how to act in this.

As an example, in Louisiana, you are required to make an effort to retrieve game and property owners cannot prevent you from crossing boundaries and fences to do so. You can be required by the owner to leave your gun while doing so in order to keep you from hunting on their land without permission.

I hunted in a pretty lawless area for a while and we had problems with a family of poachers down the road.
(Wondered how we got rights to prime hunting land for a dollar a year for 5 years!) We also had some good neighbors. We all watched for the poachers and made deals with the other neighbors regarding the rules for recovering game while still armed so that we all knew where we stood. None of us wanted to be in the woods unarmed with the poachers around.

We also developed the habit of watching for the other guys' properties and reporting to each other. Made for good friendships.

In time, the poachers were caught a few times and that problem went away. They were also stared down a few times.

I will also point out that the national standard for ownership of wounded game is the rule of first blood. The first to draw blood on game owns it and should recover it. This may not be the case in a few states, but is the generally accepted custom.

I suggest that you attend a hunter safety course in your state. They will clearly address these questions for your area.

YMHS,
CrackStock

 

[eat moose meat]

I hunt on 4.2 million measly acres. I once made a poor shot on a 3 legged deer and it crawled 100 miles to canada. Upon getting to the border I saw my deer laying on the Quebec side. They refused to throw it back well it turned into an international incident where I had to hold off the whole Canadian army with a flintlock for six months. :bull:

If you belive that Ill tell the one where I stuck my right hand in my left pocket and held myself out at arms length for an hour. :blah:

 

[Slamfire]

I thought the whole Canadian Army was in Iraq. :no:

 

[nit wit]

Knowing you as :results:I do, I believe you could hold off the Canadien Army for 6 months,Powder, a few balls and a quart of shine. Yes that would do it.
Nit Wit

 

[BUERICH]

one time when i was younger i shot a deer with a small caliber rifle an old M-1 .30 carbine to be excact. deer was my second buck. deer was hit good, but still ran to cross a road and hop into the next property. we didn knwo the people who owned it or how to get hold of them. i would never want to leave a downed animal, i remember how my dad handled it, we crossed and looked and found the deer very shortly, but we didn take the gun with us. unless you've made arrangements with the other landowner i wouldnt' cross a fence with a weapon. just go without. also once you find him i wouldnt dress him there, i'd drag him back to your side. thats what we did. on a property your size i'd either make sure my deer didn run, or most likely try to talk to my neighbors. if yall are all small property owners who hunt, chances are yall could negotiate more than just the right to cross the fence. i know in some places smaller property owners band together with mgt plans and the like as well.

 

[WTpacker]

Some years back, I was hunting with a group of co-workers on a piece of property in the Texas Hill Country. We were advised NOT to cross a particular fence to track wounded game, and ABSOLUTELY DO NOT cross it while armed. It was the fence to the LBJ Ranch, and he was there for the weekend. Know your neighbors. Ask first.
Packer

 

[Tahquamenon]

Some years back, I was hunting with a group of co-workers on a piece of property in the Texas Hill Country. We were advised NOT to cross a particular fence to track wounded game, and ABSOLUTELY DO NOT cross it while armed. It was the fence to the LBJ Ranch, and he was there for the weekend. Know your neighbors. Ask first.
Packer

Wise advise. :nono:

If you were running around on my land armed and without permission, expect to be greeted by the owner and/or sheriff armed with something other than a single shot ML.

:winking: